3 Traits of Being a Good Boss

It’s not easy being a leader and if you’re an arrogant show-off who’s just plain mean, chances you won’t get far as a boss. Half of the employees that quit their jobs quit because of their boss. A bad boss is the single biggest reason for employee disengagement and low performance in a company. Unfortunately, many of us have had one of those. What horrible bosses fail to understand is that one has to inspire people to succeed and give them the tools they need, all while meeting company goals. What about the things that really make a difference, that inspire employees to work harder, dream bigger and band together to drive a business to success? We’re pretty sure you can pinpoint the traits of a horrible boss and while you can’t change how they manage, you can make sure you don’t repeat their mistakes when you’re in charge. So exactly what makes a good boss? In this article, we share a few of our ideas on what exactly makes a great boss.

They hold themselves and others accountableProfessionals know that there are no absolutes in business. A person must make commitments, put their butt on the line, and then later see how he or she did. Unless you complete a kind of feedback loop and hold everyone accountable, nothing truly counts. Some bosses will throw their people under the bus without a second thought. Great bosses are fearless in the way they accept responsibility and hold themselves and others accountable by coaching and moving obstacles out of the way, even if their people put those obstacles there in the first place. Sometimes, they even clean up messes their people never even knew they made. That’s just what makes them great!

They are transparentIt’s true that honesty is the best policy because, without honesty, there’s no trust. Without trust, what do you have? Honest communication helps navigate roadblocks that pop up out of nowhere and provides a company with a clear direction which leads to employees having better confidence in their boss and the business. It’s of the utmost importance to be transparent and honest in the workplace with all of your employees, no matter what. Whether it’s good or bad, great bosses posses the leadership skills to always tell people the truth.

They’re effective, not productiveWe live and work in a fast-paced and highly competitive world, so once you figure out what needs to be done, it’s generally more important to be effective than to squeeze every last iota of productivity out of yourself and your people. Bosses strive to hire employees who are already skilled in their positions. Seldom does a boss ever need to teach their employees how to do their jobs, but rather they are tasked with aligning employees with the company and its culture. That often includes how things are done in the position, specific to company processes. It’s not good for a boss to just hand assignments to their employees without any order or organization. That’s what makes a bad boss. In comparison, what you’ll see from great bosses is that they’ll resist micromanaging and delegate work appropriately, as they know their employees’ strengths and weaknesses.

Bringing it All TogetherFor many unforgettable bosses, once they stopped thinking about what their people could do for them and started thinking about what they could do to help their people succeed. As a boss it’s important to inspire, teach, protect, and remove obstacles as well as be human. If you cultivate these characteristics, you’ll be immortalized in the memories of employees and become the most unforgettable boss that your people have ever known!